Cigarette machine



Patented Mai'. 24, 192,5.

UNiTeo STATES PATENT(inertes.l

mennen n. siaiTH, on BRooKLYiv, :New Yoan, Assioma To AMERICAN `imonline sa FOUNDRY COMPANY, A. CORPORATION 0F NEW" JERSEY.

CIGARETTE MACHINE.

Application led. June 4,

Tof all whom t may concern:

Be iteknown that I, 'FLnnoN D. SMrrri, a citizen of the United States, residing at Brooklyn, county ofKings, and State of New York, have invented a new and Vuseful Improvement in Cigarette Machines, of which the following is a specification. y l This invention relates to an improvement in cigarette machines. ln making certain kinds of cigarettes, the leaf stems are not removed from the leaves before the latter are shredded in the well known cutting niachiiies. As a resultant of this method of preparing tobacco for cigarettes, slivers of the leaf stem are produced and these slivers are not soft and pliable like the shreds cuty from the web of the leaves. ln `mannfac turing cigarettes by machine from tobacco prepared in this way, serions dilicultyhas been encountered in the yoperation of the machines, which difliculty is due to `the lack of control of the stem slivers as they fall through the feed chute and are delivered to the cigarette rod forming mechanism. lli/Then the slivers fall ciosswise, asthey frequently do, they choke the rod forming mechanism, breaking the continuity of the cigarette rod and necessitating machine stoppage to clear away the obstruction. The latter of course produces wastage and otherwise decreases production economy, and is very objectionable.

Thev main object of the present invention is to overcome this difliculty. It has been discovered that if the stem slivers which fall crosswise through the feed chute are intercepted and turned lengthwise of the cigarette rod at the beginning of the rod forming operation, `choking of the rod forming mechanism is prevented; and further, that the rod forming mechanism itself may be made more eliicient by reason of the change made in the machine to effect the turning of the slivers at the beginning of the rod forming operation.

"With these and other objects not specili cally mentioned in view, the invention consists of certain constructions and combinations which will be hereinafter fully described aiid then specifically pointed out in the claims hereunto appended.

In the accompanying drawings, whichv form a part of this specilication and in which like characters of reference indicate the same or like parts, F1g.-1 1s a frag- 1921.' serial No. 474,934;

mentary view, in elevation and partly in section, ofthe rod forming mechanism of a cigarette machine of a standard type and of the tobacco feed chute used in connection therewith and constructed in vaccordance `with the invention; Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail plan view ofy thatv part of the rod forming mechanism shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a plan view of that part of the rod forming mechanism extending to the left from that part shown in Fig. 2; and Figs. a, 5, 6, 7 and 8 are respectively detail cross-sectional views taken on the lines correspondingly numbered in' Fig. 1. Y

ln carrying the invention into effect, there is provided a feed mechanism, rod forming mechanism, and means coacting withy said mechanisms to engage-stein slivers received crosswise from said feed mechanism, and turn and deliver them. lengthwise to said rod forming mechanism in order to prevent clicking of the rod forming mechanism, ma` terial wastage, and' uneconomic machine stoppage. feed mechanism includes a chute through which the shredded y. tobacco falls on to .a traveling strip `of wrapper material by mechanism itself is provided with-an eXtra long and narrowly tapered tongue, one edge of which is arranged to engage stem slivers which fall crosswise in the chute and turn` them lengthwise. at'v the beginning of the rod forming operation, and which by reason of itslong narrow tapering form increasesthe etliciency of the rod forming mechanism. The particular device selected vto illustrate the invention is but one of many possible concrete embodiments of Athe same, and

these embodiments may vary widely .in

construction within the scope of the claims. The invention therefore is not to be re* stricted tothe precise details ofthe structure shown and described.

Referring to the drawings, 9 indicates the bed of a cigarette machineof the standard type, and 10 is a feed chute through which the shredded tobacco falls on to a strip of y wrapper material, not shown, but running in a well known manner through the bottom of the chute 1() and over the rod forming belt 11, the belt being driven by a wheel 12 and running over idlevpulleys 13, 14, 15 and 16'. The belt 11 is kept tight by means ofan adjustable pulley 17 and kept running true by means ot a worm and sector adjusting' device 18 of well known Construction. The belt 11 runs through a concaved forming pla-te 19 supported on a bracket 2O rising from the bed 9 before referred to. As the belt 11 travels along the formingplate 19, its edges are turned upwardly in the usual manner and are finally overlapped by means of'a curved tongue 21 carried on overhanging arms The arms 22 rest upon a spacing block 23 extending along one side of and resting upon 'the plate 19. Thev arms 9,2, and consequently the tongue 21, are held in adjusted position by means of clamping screws 24:, the arms being slotted as clearly shown in Fig. 2, to permit removal of the tongue by a rearward sliding action with out conipletelylbaclring outthe clamping screws 24k.

Thereis provided a second tongue Q carried on arms 26 and held in position by means of` clamping screws 2T, just as the tongue 21 isheld. The tongue 25 extends to the chute and eliminates the open space heretofore existing between a t'eed chute and the near edge of a. rod forming tongue, the double tongue ofthe present machine being longerl than the single `tongue of machines heretofore in commercial use7 withoutin any way lengthening the machine. The tongues may be and are more narrowly-tapered, and this increases the ei'iicieney ott the rod torming mechanism. n

Adjacent the chute 10 and the near endet thetongue is a bridge Q8 mounted on a bar QQsupported in an extension 30 rising from the bracket 2O before referred to.

The paper strip from which the cigarette rod wrapper islformed passes along the floor o't` this bridge, carrying the tobacco with it. The stemslivers arenotlong .enough to span n the space between the floor and walls of the bridge 2 8 and the tongue 25, and when one falls crosswise thro-ugh the chute 10, one of its ends w'll be arrested byone of the walls of the bridge 28, and .the other end will be swept along by the stream of tobacco carried by the strip of wrapping material. This results in turning the stem sliyei's from a crosswise position to a lengthwise position with respect to the traveling stream oit' tobacco, and when lying in a lengthwise position they do not tend to choke the rod torming mechanism and cause the wastage referred to.

At the far end of the rod forming mechanism is located the usual pasting wheel, indicated in Fig. 3 by the reference character 3l. I

that is claimed is:

1. in a cigarette machine, the combination with 'teed mechanism, of lrod forming mechanism, and means coacting with said meehanismsto engage stem slivers received crosswise from said feed mechanism and turn and deliver Vthem,lengthwise to said rod forming mechanism.

2. In a cigarette machine, the combination with al feed chute, ot a rod forming mechanism, and means eoacting with said chute and said mechanism to engage stem slivers which fall crosswise through said chute and turn them lengthwise at the beginning of the rod forming operation.

3. In a cigarette machine, the combination with a feed chute, oi' a rod forming meehanisni, and an extra. long and narrowly ta! peredton gue carried by said mechanism and extending to said chute to there engage stem slivers which fall crosswise through said chute and turn them lengthwise.

4i. ln a cigarette machine, the combination with a feed chute, ot a rod forming mechanism, and an eXtra long and narrowly tapered tongue in two parts indepeniilently and removably mounted on said mechanism and extending to said chute to there engage stem slivers which fall ciosswise .through said chute and turn them lengthwise.

In testimony whereof, :l havesigned my name to this specification.

nLBERoN D. sMrrH. 

